Darin Hoover, a Gold Star Father at Dover this weekend, was very unhappy with Biden’s disrespectful behavior during the transfer service on Sunday, noting that Biden kept checking his watch over and over, saying he did it every single time a fallen service member was received at Dover:

nam

Hoover claimed the president looked down at his watch not once but several times as the caskets were being offloaded:

"That didn't happen just once. It happened on every single one that came out of that airplane. It happened on every single one of them. They would release the salute, and he would look down at his watch on every last one, all 13, he looked down at his watch," Hoover said.

"As a father, seeing that and the disrespect, and hearing from his former leaders, one of [Taylor's] master sergeants said … that this was avoidable -- that they left them over there: They had them over there and let them down, and we can't have that. It can't happen ever again," he said.

Asked about why Hoover and his family declined to meet with Biden, the grieving father explained, "We said absolutely not. We didn't want to deal with him, we didn't want him anywhere near us. We as a family decided that that was the way it was going to be."

 NBC News' chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel knocked the Biden administration's "chaotic withdrawal" from Afghanistan. 

Appearing on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Engel called the evacuation of over 100,000 people a "success" but noted that "there are many people who are being left behind" and began questioning the "legacy" of President Biden's decision to pull troops out of Afghanistan. 

"Many people I'm speaking to say we are far worse off than we were from the beginning because within a few weeks of launching this war, the Taliban were overthrown, al-Qaeda was scattered," Engel said while reporting from Qatar on Monday. "Now, the U.S. is leaving after 20 years with the Taliban in power and the United States having been driven out. It's a tremendous legacy."

Engel questioned whether "we are going to see the next Usama bin Laden" in the fallout of the Afghan withdrawal, calling it a "profound moment" and how the Taliban has "filled a hole" in Central Asia. 

"We are coming to the conclusion with the United States… leaving a legacy behind that I think- some have described it as the worst capitulation of western values in our lifetimes," Engel said. "I went to Afghanistan, I arrived a couple of weeks ago- it was a Republic backed by the United States, backed by the West! Now it's an emerging Islamic emirate trying to find its way."

Engel has been an outspoken critic over the Biden administration's "humiliating" withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

"If you'd step back and look at what is going on, this is the United States, after 20 years, this war used to be called Operation Enduring Freedom, and it's turned out not to be enduring and they're not leaving a society that is free," Engel said on Tuesday. "It is only free according to what the Taliban says will be free, the Taliban promises that it will be free."

"You could also look at this as a tremendously humiliating- a moment of American humiliation leaving- forced to leave on the Taliban's clock and with the Taliban's good graces. So tactically, it makes sense, but I'm not sure how history- I think history will judge this moment as a very dark period for the United States," he added.

 Secretary of State Antony Blinken was criticized on Monday for not taking questions from reporters following his speech commemorating the military withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

During his address, Blinken touted the ending of troop presence in Afghanistan following 20 years of war. He expressed optimism in pursuing a diplomatic path with the Taliban as the terror group has taken control of the country. The secretary of state did acknowledge, however, that a "small number of Americans- under 200" are still in Afghanistan and want to leave. 

At the conclusion of his speech, several reporters attempted to shout their questions at Blinken, who ignored them as he walked away from the podium. 

My goodness I don’t think I’ve ever transcribed a more robotic speech and delivery in my life. Just watch it if you don’t believe me.

But anyway, to Blinken’s point about helping Americans leave, how exactly will he do that? The Taliban are in control of the whole damn country thanks to him and Biden, and they are a freaking terrorist group. The Defense Department has already said that they won’t be evacuating more Americans going forward, so how do we get them out? Will he send the Taliban large sums of money? Will he send them more military equipment? I mean seriously, this situation is intolerable. He makes it sound like these Americans will be able to come and go as they please in Afghanistan. It’s as if he isn’t taking this seriously at all. But then I guess that attitude flows from the top.

CNN anchor Jim Acosta encouraged CNN viewers on Saturday to set aside politics and offer "thoughts and prayers" for tragedies that are unfolding in Afghanistan. But the CNN anchor was quickly reminded of the times he criticized others for offering "thoughts and prayers" and didn't set aside politics. 

On Twitter, Acosta shared his report from "CNN Newsroom" where he slammed Republicans for "exploiting" the Kabul airport attack.

"My thoughts on Afghanistan this week... now is not the time to score political points. Just imagine just this once if we simply offered our thoughts and prayers. Give it some thought. Pray on it," he said. 

Critics were quick to point out that Acosta frequently criticized the notion of "thoughts and prayers" or promoted people calling it "empty words" rather than meaningful actions.

Commentary associate editor Noah Rothman reminded Acosta of his tweet on April 8 post where he quoted President Joe Biden downplaying "thoughts and prayers." 

"Biden, on gun safety, responds to the calls for ‘thoughts and prayers’ that come after mass shootings: ‘Enough prayers. Time for some action,'" Acosta tweeted at the time. 

Obviously I’ve had the hurricane at the top of my mind this weekend. Suffice it to say it has interrupted my availability. So by no dang means am I minimizing the importance of hurricane news, instructions, briefings or updates.

But y’all better KNOW that if Donald Trump were giving a hurricane briefing and someone asked HIM about a situation like what is going on in Afghanistan, where Americans are being murdered by terrorists, left behind in chaos, and our gear is being used to create a TERROR ARMY, and he just said “nah, son” and walked off there would be HUUUUUUUUGE outrage in the press.

But they will absolutely defend him here, saying it wasn’t an appropriate time or that the hurricane is also important or whatever.

But watch this:

"I’m not supposed to take any questions but go ahead," Biden told Bloomberg News reporter Jennifer Jacobs.

Jacobs began, "Mr. President, on Afghanistan—"

"I’m not gonna answer on Afghanistan now," Biden interjected before walking away from the podium.

Watch full here:

The Republican National Committee slammed the exchange, which came three days after ISIS-K terrorists attacked the airport in Kabul, killing 13 U.S. service members and more than 170 Afghans.

Biden has faced widespread criticism over his execution of the U.S. military withdrawal in Afghanistan and his actions during and after the collapse of Kabul, which completed the Taliban’s retaking of the country 20 years after their ouster by U.S.-led forces. The president has repeatedly defended his plan while hundreds of U.S. citizens and tens of thousands of Afghan allies and Afghans vulnerable to Taliban reprisal remain stranded in the country.

Just last month, Biden assured Americans that a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan was not likely and that he trusted "the capacity of the Afghan military." The president largely avoided cameras during the Aug. 15 collapse of Kabul, watching it unfold from the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland.

Three days after the Kabul collapse, Biden was fiercely criticized after he gave public remarks about COVID-19 and failed to address the crisis in Afghanistan or take any questions. On Tuesday, his remarks from the White House were delayed more than four hours after being rescheduled twice, and the U.S. evacuation effort in Afghanistan was the last topic he addressed after touting his Build Back Better agenda.

Carl has worked for the United States for 10 years.

While Carl doesn’t believe he will be able to evacuate, he said he is willing to try to return to the airport to get his daughter out of the country.

"If I get a chance to go back to the airport, yes, I will try," he said. "It doesn't matter if I'm going to get blown up. I'm doing all this because I have a 5-year-old daughter that I'm trying to get her out of here so she can have a great future. And I don't want her to suffer."

Jen Wilson, COO of Army Week Association, is working to evacuate Afghan allies. She has tried for two weeks to get Carl out of Afghanistan.

"We’re going to get you out," she told Carl through tears.

Despite Wilson’s effort to reassure him, Carl believes he’s going to die before he can escape.

"I know that I'm going to be left behind. I know that for sure. I know that I'm going to get killed," Carl said.

"But the good thing is that I'm not going to die for a bad thing. I’m going to die for a good thing. What I did, I will never regret it because I have tried to help people."

What compounds the heartache is hearing Wilson explain how they almost had him out, thought it was the real deal and were even celebrating. But then 30 minutes later Carl called her back because they were saying they couldn’t take him.

This is the tragedy that Joe Biden and his military leadership created. This is the heartache. Not to mention 13 service members who died yesterday, along with scores and scores of others. We certainly don’t want to forget about their sacrifice.

Carl was there when that bomb went off and he tried taking a young girl to the hospital, but says she died in his arms right as he got there.

I’m sure there are many ‘Carls’ in Afghanistan who are getting left behind because Biden is too cowardly to stand up to the Taliban. We have the muscle. We have the men willing to do it. We just don’t have a president with any courage whatsoever.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said later on Friday that "nothing has changed" about the federal government's decision to recommend Covid-19 booster shots to eligible Americans eight months after they are fully vaccinated. "The President would rely on any guidance by the CDC and the FDA and his health and medical experts. That guidance continues to be eight months. That has not changed," she said at a White House briefing.

The Pentagon reported this morning that there was only one suicide bombing yesterday and it was at the Abbey gate at the airport in Kabul:

They aren’t sure how the second bombing reports near the Baron hotel came to be, but said they believe there was only one bombing yesterday.

Remember, Stuart Scheller was relieved for cause after demanding that senior U.S. leaders hold themselves accountable for actions made during the U.S. military's withdrawal from Afghanistan that led to the deaths of 13 service members.

Officials confirmed to Fox News on Thursday that 11 Marines, an Army soldier and a Navy corpsman were killed in explosions near Kabul's airport Thursday. Another 169 Afghans were killed, according to two officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Scheller, a father of three who has been in the USMC Infantry for 17 years, mentioned senior military leaders including Marine Commandant Gen. David H. Berger, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark A. Milley, whom he said are "supposed to advise."

"I'm not saying we need to be in Afghanistan forever, but I am saying, did any of you throw your rank on the table and say, ‘Hey, it’s a bad idea to evacuate Bagram Airfield, a strategic airbase, before we evacuate everyone’? Did anyone do that? And when you didn’t think to do that, did anyone raise their hand and say, ‘We completely messed this up’?"

Scheller wrote in a Friday update posted to Facebook that he had been "relieved for cause based on a lack of trust and confidence."

"My chain of command is doing exactly what I would do … if I were in their shoes," he wrote. "I appreciate the opportunities AITB command provided. To all the news agencies asking for interviews… I will not be making any statements other than what’s on my social platforms until I exit the Marine Corps."

He continued: "America has many issues … but it’s my home … it’s where my three sons will become men. America is still the light shining in a fog of chaos. When my Marine Corps career comes to an end, I look forward to a new beginning. My life’s purpose is to make America the most lethal and effective foreign diplomacy instrument. While my days of hand-to-hand violence may be ending … I see a new light on the horizon."

Scheller "was relieved of command by Col. David Emmel, Commanding Officer of School of Infantry-East, due to a loss of trust and confidence in his ability to command," Marine Corps spokesman Maj. Jim Stenger said in a statement Friday evening. "This is obviously an emotional time for a lot of Marines, and we encourage anyone struggling right now to seek counseling or talk to a fellow Marine. There is a forum in which Marine leaders can address their disagreements with the chain of command, but it’s not social media."

In the Facebook video where Scheller made his remarks, the Marine also read an Aug. 18 letter from Berger that says service members' sacrifices were not made in vain and that they should seek counseling if need be. Berger was responding to Marine Corps members' posts on social media expressing anger and sadness at the current situation in Afghanistan. 

"I get it. People have killed people. I've killed people, and I see counseling, and that's fine. There's a time and place for that," Berger said in response to the letter. "The reason people are so upset on social media right now is not because the Marine on the battlefield let someone down. That service member has always rose to the occasion and done extraordinary things. People are upset because their senior leaders let them down, and none of them are raising their hands and accepting accountability and saying, 'We messed this up.'"

Scheller concluded by saying that service members did potentially "die if vain if we don't have senior leaders who own up and raise their hand and say, ‘We did not do this well in the end.’"

"Without that, we just keep repeating the same mistakes," he said. "…I want to say this very strongly. I have been fighting for 17 years. I am willing to throw it all away to say to my senior leaders: I demand accountability." 

The Biden administration has remained firm in its decision to pull all troops from the country by Aug. 31 and has evacuated more than 100,000 people. The U.S. has warned, however, of the threat of more terrorist attacks before that deadline.

As many as 1,000 Americans and tens of thousands more Afghans are still struggling to leave in one of history’s largest airlifts. Gen. Frank McKenzie, the U.S. Central Command chief overseeing the evacuation, on Thursday said about 5,000 people were awaiting flights on the airfield.

"The ramifications of this are absolutely unbelievable. First, we lost more men in this outrageous boggled, messed up withdrawal than we lost in the last 18 months in Afghanistan," Levin told host Jesse Watters.

"The idea that you would create basically the Alamo – you'd have no airpower, you'd have no external military support so the enemy knows where to hit you, so the enemy knows where to hit anybody who tries to get there."

Mark Levin also blamed Biden's closest adviser for their role in strategizing the strategic failure:

"I do not know what kind of generals we have, I do not know the kind of advice the president is getting, but this president is a disaster. He's always been a disaster, he's reckless, he's dangerous, he stubborn, and he is stupid. And now it's just cost us some lives."

Levin predicted Biden will strand thousands of American citizens in Afghanistan at the mercy of Taliban militants as he appears steadfast to his self-imposed August 31 pullout deadline – which the Taliban have said they plan to hold him to.

The Afghan crisis reflects the lack of military understanding or experience in the Biden administration, save for Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III, a retired general and former Raytheon board member whom the analyst called "utterly and completely feckless."

Levin makes the point that Biden has just blown up more than half a century of American national security and that he needs to be impeached. He said that Republicans in the House need to start hammering this hard and loud.

Yes, Levin says he understands who is next in line behind Biden. But he says it’s also important that “we, and the world, need to know that we try to hold people accountable for what they’ve done.”

He also slammed Biden and the media for labeling this evacuation the ‘greatest airlift in American history’ Levin says this is no such thing. Rather, he says, it’s the worst “American surrender in American history.”

Watch the video for more…

Former President Donald Trump addressed the attack at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021. He said the attack “would not have happened if I were your president.”

As one nation, America mourns the loss of our brave and brilliant American service members in a savage and barbaric terrorist attack in Afghanistan. These noble American warriors laid down their lives in the line of duty. They sacrifice themselves so the country that they loved, racing against time to rescue their fellow citizens from harm’s way. They died as American heroes and our nation will honor their memory forever. I want to express my deepest condolences to the families of those we have lost. Today all Americans grieve alongside you. Together we also pray that God will heal the other courageous American service members who were wounded in this heinous attack. In addition, our hearts are with the families of all the innocent civilians who died, and with the many men, women, and children who were terribly injured in this act of evil.

This tragedy should never have taken place, it should never have happened, and it would not have happened if I were your president. Over the past few weeks I know that many Americans have felt profound sorrow and even pain watching the events taking place in Afghanistan, and perhaps none more so than the veterans of that 20 year war. Many of them answered the call proudly and without hesitation after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. Every American who served in Afghanistan has made tremendous sacrifices for our country. On behalf of your fellow citizens, I want you to know that those sacrifices were not made in vain. We know what you did, we know how brave you were, and we thank you, we salute you, and we honor you for all time. I hope that every American will join me in continuing to pray for the safe return of all US citizens and soldiers from Afghanistan in the coming days. Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

In an exclusive interview Thursday Trump warned host Sean Hannity that Biden's "wokeness" and that of his top generals like Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley are misinterpreting the power and proclivities of the rank and file military members and incoherently shuffling their priorities:

"Biden and the woke generals are just woke. I was saying even at the end of my time, I was seeing letters being sent out about equality and all of these different things -- the soldiers, they want to fight, they want to be prepared to fight, they want to be soldiers, but the woke generals, it has got into a level that nobody can even believe," he said.

In Afghanistan, Trump said Biden and the commanders sought to withdraw as he had but that they did so in the exact backward order: "They forgot one thing, they forgot to take the people with them and the merchandise with them, meaning they forgot to take the greatest military equipment anywhere in the world with them, and it's hard to believe, actually, because a child would have understood. You get the military out last. A child would have understood that. How could they have done this to our country?"

That move, he said, constituted one of the worst decisions by a sitting president in United States history, as 13 service members are now dead and Kabul continues in turmoil:

"It's so sad. It's probably from the standpoint of military tactics and just embarrassment, the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to our country; we look like fools all over the world, we are weak, we are pathetic, we are being led by people that have no idea what they are doing," Trump said.

"They take the military out and then they say now we will bring out the people, then all of a sudden, the Taliban walks in – We had the Taliban so under control they would not have moved without getting our approval. We had an incredible agreement. They weren't killing our soldiers."

Trump noted Biden even obliquely referenced his predecessor's success in that regard, pointing to the portion of the president's remarks where he acknowledged the Taliban hadn't killed an American service member in 18 months because of the deal struck in 2020.

"I want to tell you, I think our soldiers, even civilians, I think our soldiers are in tremendous danger. I think airplanes flying in and out of the airport are in tremendous danger. [The Taliban] have the best equipment, best rockets, best tanks and helicopters, Apache helicopters, a lot of them, that are immensely valuable -- and by the way, Russia wants them because they want to examine them because we have far superior technology, and China wants them," Trump warned.

"This is the dumbest thing -- I think it was the dumbest move anybody has ever made perhaps in the history of our country, allowing this to happen, taking the military out and then say ‘Oh, we hope to get the people out'."

Trump criticized CENTCOM Commander Gen. Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie Jr. for remarking Thursday that the U.S. "share[s] a common purpose" with the Taliban in terms of evacuating fully by August 31:

"As long as we keep that common purpose alive, they've been useful to work with. They've cut some of our security concerns down and they've been useful to work with going forward," the commander said.

"When I hear General McKenzie say that the Taliban is going to protect us, the Taliban is the enemy. I dealt with the leader of the Taliban. This is not a very simple man, this is not a boy scout," Trump fumed.

He went on to tell host Sean Hannity that in personal discussions and negotiations with Taliban leader Abdul Baradar, he made clear to the militant that any untoward acts would be met with a tenfold response by the U.S. military – contrasting that stance with Biden's deferential position.

"We had them totally under control. Every time we saw movement, we'd hit them with an F-18, and the movement stopped," Trump said.

"But we had very little of that because of Abdul, who I spoke to … Abdul would not let anybody do anything."

He went on to describe how Baradar likely heard the news Biden was withdrawing with haste earlier this month:

"I can tell you what happened, in my opinion, they went to him and the other leaders and they said ‘the American military is leaving, they are pulling out,’ and he probably looked at the people who said it and said 'You've got to be -- there's no way that's happening'," Trump surmised. 

"They couldn't believe it. And then they sent some fighters in and there was zero resistance. Before, they would've gotten blown away"

Trump added that his administration led the defeat of ISIS because of "great generals" on the ground – and not what he called "television generals" stateside who make the media rounds.

He added that he would not have allowed the abandonment of the Soviet-era Bagram Air Force base, underlining its strategic location – near Afghan borders with China, Pakistan and Tajikistan and not far from Russia.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki dismissed calls for President Joe Biden to resign in the wake of a terrorist attack in Kabul, Afghanistan that killed 13 U.S. service members, saying that there’s no room for politics in the discussion of the tragedy.

 "I would say, first, this is a day where US service members — 12 of them — lost their lives at the hands of terrorists," Psaki said.

A 13th service member was declared dead following Psaki's remarks. 

"I can confirm that subsequent to Gen. McKenzie's remarks, a thirteenth US service member has died from his wounds suffered as a result of the attack on Abbey Gate," a spokesperson from CENTCOM said. 

"This is a day where U.S. service members, 12 of them, lost their lives at the hands of terrorists," Psaki said during a Thursday briefing. "It is not a day for politics. We would expect that any American, whether they are elected or not, would stand with us in our commitment to going after and fighting and killing those terrorists wherever they live and to honoring the lives of service members, that’s what this day is for."

 "We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay," Biden said in early evening remarks from the White House, hours after the Pentagon said 12 service members had been killed in two separate suicide blasts outside the airport gates. Shortly after Biden spoke, US Central Command announced an additional US service member has died, with a total of 18 wounded. Ten Marines were among the 13 service members killed.

The Pentagon confirmed the initial explosion as well as a second attack at the Baron Hotel, where Americans have gathered in the past for rescue and evacuation. Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr. said two suicide bombers were assessed to be ISIS fighters. 

"The threat from ISIS is extremely real," he said. "We believe it is their desire to continue those attacks, and we expect those attacks to continue, and we're doing everything we can to prepare for those attacks."

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a statement on the attacks. 

"On behalf of the men and women of the Department of Defense, I express deepest condolences to the loved ones and teammates of all those killed and wounded in Kabul today," he said. "Terrorists took their lives at the very moment these troops were trying to save the lives of others."

"We mourn their loss. We will treat their wounds. And we will support their families in what will most assuredly be devastating grief," he said. "But we will not be dissuaded from the task at hand."

More than five hours after the attack, President Biden had still not issued a statement about the attack. He is scheduled to speak at 5 p.m. ET.

It was not clear the extent of the injuries suffered by the troops, and how many others were hurt in the large crowds that regularly gathered at the airport seeking to flee the Taliban. 

However, it marks the deadliest day for U.S. troops since insurgents in Afghanistan shot down a U.S. Chinook helicopter in August 2011 – which killed 38 people, including 31 U.S. troops.

The Taliban had moved quickly through the country ahead of the planned U.S. withdrawal at the end of the month, catching the U.S. off guard and leading to chaotic scenes at Kabul airport and a mass evacuation effort. As of Thursday, 104,000 people had been flown out, including 5,000 U.S. citizens. The Pentagon said about 1,000 Americans may still be in the country.

There are currently 5,200 U.S. troops at the airport and thousands of Afghan evacuees still on the tarmac waiting to be evacuated. U.S. planes have been leaving every 40 minutes out of the airport.

McKenzie says they are doing everything they can to be prepared for these attacks and adds “and that includes reaching out to the Taliban who are actually providing the outer security around the airfield to make sure they know what we expect them to do to protect us. And we will continue to coordinate with them as they go forward.”

The Taliban protect us? Seriously? I don’t necessarily blame McKenzie for this, I blame Joe Biden who refuses to allow our military to leave the airport. This is why the blood of these 12 service members are on his hands, for putting our military, US citizens and our Afghan allies in this terrible predicament.